Indonesian Earthquake and Tsunami

If you search on Google Maps for Palu city in Indonesia, you will find Restaurants, Hotels and Pubs - but little about the people.  What these photos do not show are the many ordinary people of Palu in their daily lives - and as elsewhere for those living in poverty there is no security for the future.  Indonesia itself sits between the Pacific and Indian oceans, and Palu is part of the beautiful Sulawesi island. Small wonder then that its beaches are a magnet, especially for families and young people. 

 The earthquake and tsunami that hit Sulawesi on the 28th September devastated everything in its path.  It is no surprise that people are asking why warnings of the tsunami were not given, why so many people had to die, why thousands have lost their homes, their hopes, their dreams. It is of little help to find that a warning system is in place, and may have detected the approach of the tsunami - yet the severity of this tsunami was not recognised and not acted upon in time.

See this report from the BBC to get a fuller picture of the tragedy. A tsunami warning system needs detection, interpretation and communication in order to work properly.  After this disaster, Indonesia will surely want to put a better system in place, so that thousands of lives may be saved.

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